Coffee Crisis Brewing: How a ‘Totally Avoidable’ Tariff is Spiking Prices
U.S. retail coffee prices jumped 21.7% in August 2025, the steepest rise since 1997, after the Trump administration quintupled tariffs on Brazilian coffee imports and imposed new duties on Vietnam and Indonesia. Global shortages and shipping delays have pushed coffee futures above $4 per pound. Roasters report doubled bean costs and million-dollar tariff bills, forcing cafés to hike prices or absorb losses.